A couple thousand people left the Blues Tent newly smitten by the Carolina Chocolate Drops. They are revivalists to a degree, revisiting rural African-American folk songs from as far back as the 19th century. Don Flemons, one young member of the trio, even dressed the part in suspenders and a long-sleeve work shirt buttoned to the neck.

But they possess a contagious enthusiasm and are clearly not stuck in the past. They ended their set with "Hit 'Em Up Style," a sassy, contemporary anthem by R&B singer Blu Cantrell. The Drops' Rhiannon Giddens tore it up with a focused, resolute wail and the cadence of rapper, backed by Flemons on banjo and Justin Robinson on a microphone as a human beatbox.

On "Memphis Shakedown," an old Memphis Jug Band rave-up, Giddens worried a kazoo as Robinson blew into a jug and Flemons strummed a guitar with abandon. The group appeared in the Denzel Washington film "The Great Debaters" and contributed to its soundtrack. They revisited "City of Refuge," a soundtrack cut by Alvin Youngblood Hart, remaking it with bold three part harmonies.

"Snowden's Jig," an 1860s-era instrumental, was spectral. Flemons tapped and rattled bones like spoons, Robinson stomped his feet on the stage and Giddens' fiddle transported listeners to another time and place. The ovation at the end of their set was loud, long and richly deserved.

IN BRIEF

At the Acura Stage, Widespread Panic invited members of the Wild Magnolias, in full Mardi Gras Indian finery, onstage for a "Big Chief" led by keyboardist JoJo Hermann.

Backed by a band with plenty of rock 'n roll bite, Bettye LaVette channeled Tina Turner in the way she stepped and sang at the Blues Tent.

At Congo Square, Tower of Power -- celebrating 40 years together -- threw bricks, as Art Neville might say. They served up one airtight, horn-heavy slab of funk and soul after another. "What is hip?" they asked. Answer: Tower of Power.